Youth

Campus survey reveals shifting patterns in how young Catholics identify The university’s director of campus ministry A student newspaper at a prominent Catholic university has published survey results showing a significant increase in students identifying as LGBT over the past three years. The findings have sparked intense debate among faculty, administrators, alumni, and donors about the university’s Catholic identity and its pastoral approach to students who experience same-sex attraction or gender dysphoria. The survey, conducting by the newspaper’s investigative team and drawing responses from over two thousand undergraduates, found that the share of students identifying as LGBT has nearly doubled since 2022. Sociologists note that the findings are consistent with broader national trends among college-aged adults, though the rate of increase at Catholic institutions appears sharper than at secular peers. Campus ministry leaders say they are committed to accompanying all students while remaining faithful to Church teaching, a balance they acknowledge is difficult to strike in the current cultural climate. The university’s president issued a statement emphasizing the institution’s commitment to both truth and compassion. Our mission has always been to form the whole person. That mission does not change based on survey results. Several faculty members have called for revised pastoral policies, while a group of alumni donors has written to the board of trustees urging the university to reaffirm its commitment to the Church’s teaching on human sexuality without qualification. The board has acknowledged receiving the letter and said it will be discussed at the next regular meeting. The university has not indicated whether it will make any policy changes in response to the survey. A spokesperson said the administration is in ongoing dialogue with campus ministry, student affairs, and the local bishop’s office to ensure that the university’s pastoral approach is coherent and consistent with its Catholic mission.

The largest Catholic youth gathering in Asia draws pilgrims from across the region Cardinal Tagle addresses the gathering A n estimated three million young Catholics gathered in Manila for a four-day pilgrimage culminating in an outdoor Mass celebrated by the papal legate, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle . The event drew pilgrims from South Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam, India, and as far as Papua New Guinea — the largest regional Catholic youth gathering in Asia’s recorded history. The pilgrimage unfolded across four days of catechetical sessions, adoration, the sacrament of reconciliation, and cultural celebration. Over two thousand confessors heard confessions continuously for forty-eight hours, and organizers report that lines stretched for several city blocks at peak times on the third day. Organizers described the gathering as a sign of hope for the Church in Asia, where Catholicism is growing in some nations even as it faces institutional pressure in others. Pope Francis sent a video message calling the youth of Asia the future of the universal Church and urging them not to be afraid to take their faith into the public square. The young people of Asia are not the Church of tomorrow. They are the Church of today. Security officials praised the orderly conduct of the pilgrimage, which despite its scale proceeded without serious incident. Local parishes and schools provided more than fifteen thousand volunteers to assist with logistics, translation, pastoral care, and the distribution of food and water across the sprawling outdoor venue. The bishops’ conference has announced that the next regional youth pilgrimage will be held in Jakarta in three years’ time, marking the first time the event will be hosted outside the Philippines. Indonesian Catholic leaders say they are already planning and have begun fundraising to accommodate what they hope will be an even larger gathering.